Obedience results in victory.
Victory is not the experience of winning, nor is it necessarily the sensation of a job well done. It is knowing a choice was made in agreement with God.
Many a Soldier of The Cross has experienced the sting of humiliation or loss when doing the right thing. After all, He who is Perfect and left Glory for us, suffered a painful, public death. The Resurrection was private except for the unseen hosts. Yet, the Cross was a tremendous victory.
And, so it is for many of us. We must make choices according to God's Word, and those choices do not always expand the comfort zone. We are told that the race is to be run and at the end, we will receive the runner's crown. Our goal is not the here and now, and we must bear that in mind. Otherwise we become shortsighted and addicted to accolades and temporary satisfaction.
He alone sees the end from the beginning.
He knows the cost.
He still asks that we trust Him and do as He says.
There simply isn't anything else.